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You may want to try going to a great wealth of knowledge on both subjects food and writing in the name Michael Ruhlman. He has a contact button on his site ruhlman.com. He has always been forthcoming with answers to questions I have had and I'm not a writer. He has written several books on chefs, culinary school and cooking itself including a cookbook for Thomas Keller and "The French Laundry". He would be a great place for advice I would think... I have first hand knowledge from his Skills Instructor at the CIA that Mr. Ruhlman's ability to disseminate information on his knowlege of cooking borders on being "saintlike". Hope that helps.

Oh yes, and I'm right there with you on miss Paula. I have yet to see a favorable review of her establishment.

I have a huge interest in food and I went to school for journalism. I'm currently a freelance writer. My best advice to you is to build up your portfolio. As a new freelance writer you're going to have to take whatever feelancing gigs come your way. If you're fortunate, as I have been, they often ask you what your area of interest is. I always make it clear that I love writing food-related articles. Once you have published work either in print or online, then you can start applying to culinary publications. Also, I don't know what state you live in, but here in L.A. there's obviously the Los Angeles Times, but there's also countless smaller newspapers that cover smaller areas. One in particular, which I did an internship for, accepts querie letters from new freelance writers, especially when it comes to restaurant reviews because during slow weeks, they run them as filler. You should look into speaking to the features editor at various small, daily or weekly newspapers in your area. They are usually willing to accept freelance pieces from new or inexperienced writers as long as you're willing to be edited fiercely and have strong writing chops. Good luck!

MelsDiner: You're right, and thanks for picking up on that. The Paula Deen posts aren't (I hope) taken as mean-spirited -- more an "Omigod! Look at what she came up with now!" spirit. I've always had an aversion to the snarky, mean-spirited potshots that you so often see on blogs, and when I founded Slice and A Hamburger Today, I purposely avoided that type of writing; later, when I joined Serious Eats as managing editor, I tried to impress on the staff and our writers the importance of keeping things out of the gutter and above the belt.

As far as breaking in to food writing, a blog is not only a great place to try out your voice, it's almost essential these days, as a recent piece on OJR.org points out: How to Keep Your Job in Journalism. Though it's titled "How to Keep Your Job," it's got some good advice in there for anyone looking to get a job in the field. An assigning editor is going to want to see clips or writing samples, and a blog is a great organizational tool to archive these items.

@renzata: Thanks for the typo correx. It's a pet peeve of mine, too. That and Rachel Ray when it should be Rachael.

First you have to catch people's attention so they'll read your work, and then hopefully think about it and comment on it.

You did that!

I've said it before and I'll say it again! Paula Deen does not do "southern cooking". She does fast and easy cooking. The handful of people I know who have visited her buffet have all said it was awful. From what I've seen her methods are more assembling ingredients than anything else. I love the south, I love Savannah and I love real southern cooking (what ever happened to Nathalie Dupree?) but I can not stand that syrupy-fake accent she lays on like mayonnaise. It's like a fingernail on a black board; "Frumah kitchn to yerrrrrrrz."

Well said, producestories. Thanks.

I love Miss Paula. Her food isn't meant for everyday, however. I've made several of her dishes and was quite pleased with them for the most part. I do admit that I prefer her on "Paula's Home Cooking", where she's the sweet, lovable funny mama, than I do on "Paula's Party", where she can be somewhat OTT and vulgar.

And I'd eat her vittles before SL or RR anyday.

CookiePie: Great advice. Thanks for breaking down the different functions and routes one could take to a food-writing career.

"She is indeed trying to kill us" - Jeez, bold statement! If she's trying to kill "us", wouldn't she be "killing" herself in the process? She seems as happy as a bee!

But anyway, a food blog would definitely be a great place to start. If you eventually write for a magazine or need to work your way up, you'll be creating a whole blog's worth of writing samples in the meantime!

Hillary
Chew on That

I tend to lurk here and let the house culinary expert (my wife) do the talking from a position of knowledge about the various topics of cooking addressed at Serious Eats; however, as someone who has been paid to write and has been published (and I bring this up not to brag, but rather because it's important to present your qualifications before jumping to conclusions), I found myself unable to pass on this post without commenting.

Writing is serious business. These days, the ease in which one can create a blog leads one to believe that the minute her blog "goes live," he is a writer. And he is; however the difference between being a writer and being a writer whose work is publishable is a huge one. While you might think that you have to be literate to have your work published, it is not always the case. (I've worked on manuscripts written by the wife of a Pulitzer Prize-winning author that bordered on unreadable due to the frequency of typos and grammatical nightmares -- and her books sell well. But she has two huge advantages -- a husband who is well-respected in the business and great editors (myself NOT included) who made her what she is today.

Assuming that you are not fortunate enough to have such a connection, you should concentrate on your writing and make certain that it is as strong as possible. Based on your initial post, it's clear that you'd benefit from a solid review of the basic tenets of grammar and sentence structure. Take a writing course. Then take an editing course. All the while, work on accepting constructive criticism (which might be the most challenging part of the process). It hurts to hear that your writing stinks. (Not saying that yours necessarily does; just speaking from experience. I’ve taken many writing and editing courses over the years.)

Another aspect that will likely determine whether you are a success or you are a failure is whether you are able to maintain the balance between your ego and your actual talent. While it’s important to have a healthy level of beli”ef in your talents, the line between talent and delusion is a fine one. You can call yourself a “chef.” You can call yourself a “writer.” But are you really a chef? Do you run a restaurant?

Ruhlman recently wrote a blog entry about the terminology in which he said, “Even I am called a chef, and worse, celebrity chef, in enough publications to be sufficiently alarmed by the muddy waters here. I am not a chef, though I have cooked for money and cooking remains part of my work. The sinister Bourdain is a writer and television host and producer, not a chef, though he once was. Rachael Ray was never a chef and never pretended to be.” And here’s someone who could call himself “chef” without anyone blinking an eye, and yet, he doesn’t.

Next, it’s crucial that you find your voice and ensure that said voice is both original and compelling. I read your “Paula Dean is trying to kill us” rant and was both underwhelmed by your argument and unimpressed with your writing. Your arguments, such as they were, were not well thought out, and not supported by many facts. You made your point in the first sentence and spent the next several hundred words both repeating yourself and weakening your argument by writing at a level that I would not expect from a bad stand-up comedian, let alone a “chef” educated in the world of food.

The “I’ve been to Savannah twice…” setup to the paragraph about which I’ll soon comment reminds me of Homer Simpson’s comment, “You know what I like about you English? Octopussy. I must have seen that movie… twice!” When I read that sentence, I hoped you’d follow with a stronger argument.

Instead, you wrote, “I'm amazed at the amount of people that flock to 'the Lady and Sons'. I peered in through the window and saw a buffet. A buffet. This woman is a culinary tyrant and her resturant has a buffet.” I’ll ignore the typos and grammatical issues for a moment and focus on your argument, which was weak. You claim that you’re shocked that people flock to her restaurant, not because the food is inedible, but because she is “a culinary tyrant and… has a buffet.”

The question that immediately came to mind was “how does a ‘chef’ criticize a chef (or at least a woman who was a chef for a long time when she ran her kitchen) without tasting going in and TASTING HER FOOD? In addition, one of my favorite restaurants in New York City, Churrascaria Plataforma (a top-rated Brazilian rodizio) has a large buffet in the middle of the floor on which you’ll find incredible sushi, terrific salads, and other gourmet hot and cold entrees. Accordingly, anyone who has had a similar experience to mine with certain buffets will read that sentence and, if you’re lucky, tune your piece out. (If you’re unfortunate, they’ll consider you a hack.)

Research is crucial when writing non-fiction. Paula Deen (spelling counts when you’re attacking someone) does not have a chain of restaurants in Savannah (which would make her one of the “independant” restaurants you claim she is overtaking.) It seems to me that Paula’s presence in Savannah likely helps her fellow restaurateurs since most visitors are likely not to eat every meal at her restaurant. People who never would have visited Savannah were it not for The Lady and Sons and Uncle Bubba’s Oyster House are exposed to other eateries in town.

Understand that I’m not defending Deen or her cooking (I’m lactose intolerant and while I’m amused by her show, I could never eat the majority of the items she cooks; however, I can watch her show and be inspired to make dishes that will have similar flavor combinations without using all of the butter and sugar that she does), after having read your piece, which manages to be bitter, vindictive, puerile, and (painfully) humorless at the same time, I’m more likely to defend Paula Deen against what feels like an attack of her character, especially when said attack uses (and I say this generously) anecdotal evidence to “prove” its point.

When Ruhlman and Bourdain write a blog post in which they brutalize their fellow “chefs,” they do so with both wit and elegance, and do so in such a way in which it is clear that they are basing their opinions on fact.

Understand that I don’t consider myself an expert on either cooking or writing; however, I’ve been writing professionally for more than 15 years and cut my teeth as an editor at my college newspaper before that for four years. I’ve also edited more than 100 books, both fiction and non fiction, and currently edit a major music Web site. I’ve achieved what I have because I’ve written more than two million words over the years for various publications and am fortunate to have been wise enough to listen to others when they criticized my work.

I’m sure that, with time, you’ll achieve success. For now, keep writing and listening to the criticism of people in whom you trust. And for the love of god, get to a bookstore and purchase a copy of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style. :)

Bravo, Royny23. Well written. Now, can you help me become a better writer? Freelancing writing is incredibly difficult. I'm constantly being hammered by deadlines and I always feel like my writing stinks.

What royny23 wrote may come across as dry, but to anyone who's considering writing professionally, he's summarised a lot of crucial points, so the response is very relevant to the original post: SheikBLoco's 4th sentence IS: 'Any tips, advice, or direction that anyone could provide as to how to get my foot in the door would be greatly appreciated'.

I'm a copyeditor, and the amount of work most MSs need before their quality is acceptable to a publisher borders on (sometimes crosses the border to, actually) unbelievable. Plenty of publishers won't even accept a MS that whose grammar/spelling they consider too poor, or whose tone comes across as 'problematic' (too biased, too emotional, etc.). Standards do still exist.

There is one other thing: Over time, one's understanding of a situation or setting changes, and as a result, so does one's attitude. If one feels impassioned about something, it's tempting to just let the feelings rip, and not hold back. That's fine. Write it all out just as you feel it. Then put it away. Go back to it a little later when you're feeling calm and philosophical. Read what you've written with as much detachment as possible. Ask yourself: If you were to read this after having undergone a 180-degree turnaround from your current point of view, would you be ashamed of what you'd written? Be honest. Things can come back to haunt you as a writer. It is possible to be both objective and impassioned; striving for this will increase the respect with which your writing is received, and will reduce the odds that your writing will rebound on you at a critical point in your carrear .

@SheikBLoco.......your "apology" was sarcasm and more insults. Two wrongs do not make a write.r.

@royny23, thank you so much for your post.

This has really turned ridiculous.

Thanks for the help, not critiques.

Paula Deen is still terrible.

Goodbye.

The level of conflict generated in this topic is what 'stickiness' is made out of - whether it be on a website such as SE or in a written piece anywhere.

In that sense, the OP generated a successful piece of writing - and he did get what he asked for, which was advice in the particular profession (note the word "profession" here - for the connotation of the word infers that here is an activity that needs to studied and practiced at some length in order to be able to do it on a level where $$ is paid for doing it - which is one sure test (though perhaps not the only one) of whether the level of the work being done is worth people giving up something ($$) for the pleasure of its experience.

To use the example of being a chef (as the OP claimed to be): Yes, there are amateur cooks that might be able to cook as well as a chef who runs a professional kitchen each day. But could they walk into a professional kitchen and run it? Would things work right, would people pay for it? Could a good cook walk into a professional kitchen and immediately take charge and make it run right?

If the OP has (at some personal or parental expense) attended the CIA and had to study and pass tests of many specific orders, including how to start and operate a restaurant as a business, then I would guess that he/she would vote that it takes more than being a good cook to be able to step into the shoes of "chef" just because it sounds cool.

As someone who was an executive chef myself at a point of time in my own life, my previous question rose (one might actually term it a journalistic one - for facts need to be correct when published or the entire thing written is moot, isn't it? The recent Robert Irvine debacle is surely an example of that!): "You're a chef? Tell me about it." People will ask. Credentials matter, so be sure that they are phrased accurately. Don't gild the lily. Remember what a chef is - respect it as a profession, not a graduation from a school. And remember what a writer is as a profession - it too demands study, hard work, and application.

That the original post generated conflict is actually good in some ways. Then of course the question should be asked: Does one trust the response given and/or the group giving it enough to want more? Is the response to be respected? Will it help in reaching the stated goal? That is something that plays out differently in any variety of scenarios.

Critique is exactly what writers get. Moreseo than anyone who cooks at any level - for people generally have a soft spot in their hearts when sitting down at a table to be fed (Alan Rich obviously has taken steps to become more objective about this, with interesting results) whereas nobody sits down to read with gratitude but rather with all their critical antennae out to sense whether this thing, this gathering of words . . . is good to eat or not, believable or not, interesting or not. And then (as words are ideas) the readers' own ideas surface and it is "join up" time or attack time. (That is one reason rhetoric as a writing device is so intensely taught in the English Departments of universities now - everyone "out there" who is bothering to participate has an opinion and they all want to "win" - though certainly there are other genres of writing that can be explored in either direction of this central ground, whether they be softer and solely informational with no personality added but for a big smile or the other thing which is fiction which can speak softly but carry a big stick.)

So if you like to cook, cook. That is easy enough, it is self-generated and people are generous when given the opportunity to taste the results of your offerings. If you like to run a professional kitchen, dealing with vendors/customers-guests/waitstaff/ fresh foods in bulk for high production levels/health codes-zoning/ management and of course the thing Bourdain immortalized as kitchen culture which exists in many professional kitchens, then be a chef. If you like to sit at a table combining words then recombining them in revision in the endless quest for the right flavor, color, and aroma of alphabetic recipe (while hopefully spelling things right and learning the endless rules of grammar which fill books the size of steamer trunks if you know what a steamer trunk is heh heh) then sending them out into the world to be torn apart, then be a writer.

Hey. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do. (I think that quote came from Robert Duvall in some movie but really can't prove it . . .)

Oh yeah. If I had to shorten this post, I'd just look at royny23's posts and say "What he said." But why do that, when all this free white space is here to fill with keyboard symbols!